Accumulator-rebreather and stowage bag combination



United States Patent [72] Inventor RobertAJlIddy Arcadia, Caller-h [21]Appl. No. 673,486 [22] Filed Oct. 6, I967 [45] Patented Nov. 17, 1970[73] Assignee SierrnEngineerlngCo.

FOREIGN PATENTS 697,762 9/ 1953 Great Britain 128/205 PrimaryExaminerAnton 0. Oechsle Assistant Examiner-Thomas Zack. A norneyBeehler and Arant ABSTRACT: The invention resides in a combinationoxygen gas accumulation-rebreather bag and stowage bag of relativelylight sheet plastic material arranged so that the stowage bag containsthe accumulator-rebreather bag together with a mask and a supply linehose in an arrangement such that the stowage bag can be cut loose whenopened making it easy to withdraw the equipment contained in it, afterwhich the stowage bag can be disposed of. The combination initiallyconsists of a single elongated bag sealed transversely between oppositeends, dividing the bag into two separate sections. One section has abreathing mask attached to it at one side and a supply line attached toit at another side. The other section is made so that it can expand to aslightly larger capacity 1 and can be pulled inside out over theaccumulator-rebreather section, the mask and the supply line and thereclosed at its normally open end so as to hermetically seal the contentswithin it. When the contents are to be removed, the two sections can becut, by use of scissors for example, along the sealing line whichnormally separates one section from the other, thereby opening thestowage section so that it can be removed and thrown away when theaccumulator-rebreather section is removed and placed in use.

, Patented Nov. 17, 1970 3,540,443

IN YEA/TOR B05527- .H. Huoov 46 5% 4 M2 ACCUMULATOR-REBREATIIER ANDSTOWAGE BAG COMBINATION In airplane travel, for example, it is desirableto have light weight compact breathing equipment available in quantityfor every passenger. Although the equipment may be used only rarely, itmust nevertheless be always available and completely dependable. Also,because it is for use by many persons individually it is requisite thatthe portions of it which are brought into contact with the user, as wellas the oxygen supply line, he kept in a dependably sterilized condition,for storing and shipping.

It is therefore among the objects of the invention to provide a new andimproved lightweight sterilized package for a mask, accumulator bag, andoxygen supply line which is compact, convenient, dependable, and towhich access can be gained immediately.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and im' provedcombination bag which includes initially an oxygen accumulator sectionequipped with a mask and supply line together with a stowage sectionmade of the same material which encompasses and hermetically seals theaccumulator section with its appurtenances, the stowage section being soarranged that it can be quickly cut loose and thrown away after theaccumulator section and appurtenances have been withdrawn and put touse.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a new and improvedcombination accumulator and stowage bag of light weight, preferablytranslucent plastic sheet material, wherein the accumulator section andstowage section are initially formed from a single plastic sheet anddivided from each other by merely a sealed separator joint permittingthe stowage sec tion to be turned inside out over the remaining portionsof the device in order to seal those portions temporarily until thecombination is ready for use.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in theconstruction, arrangement, and combination of the various parts of thedevice, whereby the objects contemplated are attained, as hereinafterset-forth, pointed out in the appended claims and illustrated in theaccompanying drawings:

In the drawings: FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the assembly inthe initial stage of construction. 1 7

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the device shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a crosssection'al view on the line 3-3 of FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectionalview on the line' 44 of FIG. 2. FIG. 5 is a plan view partially brokenaway showing the storage section in use encompassing the accumulatorsection.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view on the line 6-6 of FIG. 5. v

FIG; 7 is a plan view of the accumulator section together withappurtenances after it has been removed and is ready for use.

' In an embodiment of the invention chosen for the purpose ofillustration there is shown, particularly in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, and 4, anelongated bag 10 of thin synthetic, plastic material, preferablytranslucent, which is divided into two sections, namely anaccumulator-rebreather section II and a stowage section 12.

The accumulator-rebreather section 11 has an upper wall 13 and lowerwall 14 joined together by lateral seals 15 and 16, the lateral seals 15and 16 becoming end seals 17 and 18, respectively. At the junction ofthe end seals 17 and 18 is a mask connection 19 to which is attached amask 20. Along the side defined by the lateral seall6 there is an oxygensupply line connection 21 to which is attached a length of supply line22.

The remainder of the bag, or sack, consisting of the stowage section 12is a continuation of the same material which fonns theaccumulator-rebreather section II. The stowage section also consists ofan upper wall 23 and lower wall 24 joined along opposite edges bylateral seals 25 and 26 respectively. In the upper and lower walls 23,24, respectively, of the stowage section 12 are pleats 27 and 28. Thepleats are normally folded flat against each other and against the sideofthe bag and may formed in various ways, either by having additionalmaterial sufficient to form the sheets or by stretching or expanding thematerial of the walls to form the pleats. The principal purpose of thepleats is to expand the capacity of the stowage section slightly so thatit'will be larger than the accumulatorrebreather section and theappurtenances attached to it The accumulator-rebreather section andstowage section are separated from each other by a relatively wide bandor seal 5 30. The presence of the seal 30 provides a chamber 31 whichserves the accumulator-rebreather section and a chamber 32 which is astowage chamber. In use, oxygen from the supply line 22 enters thechamber 31 where it accumulates and serves as an immediately availablesource of supply for the mask 20 which is attached to it.

When the accumulator-rebreather section together with the mask andsupply line is to be stored, the mask 20 is folded around to a positionoverlying the upper wall 13 as shown advantageously in FIGS. 5 and 6. Atthe same time, the hose of the supply line 22 is coiled as shown in FIG.5 and likewise laid upon the upper wall 13in a compact arrangement sothat the place, free end edges 33 and 34 are sealed with respect to eachother, thereby hermetically sealing the chamber 32 in its enlargedcondition around the mask supply line and the exterior of theaccumulator-rebreather section.

When the device is to be put to use, a cut is made along the outermostportion 35 of the wide band or seal 30. This is sufficient to entirelyfree the stowage section from the accumulator-rebreather section,without at the same time opening the accumulator-rebreather section. Thestowage section can then be pulled entirely free from theaccumulator-rebreather section and thrown away. Access is immediatelyhad to the mask 20 which can be promptly placed over the nose and mouthof the user, and the supply line 22, which can be immediately pluggedinto a source of oxygensupply. The device is then ready for use in theform illustrated in FIG. 7.

By constructing both sections of exactly the same material and at thesame time, construction cost is kept down. Assembly costs are likewiseminimized by using the same sheet of material folded back upon itselfand there sealed upon itself to hermetically seal the appurtenanceswithin a chamber which can be easily sterilized, as for example byethylene oxide gas. Seals can be tightly made by commercially availableheat sealing means such as a heat seal, click or zip type seal. Thedevice in compacted stowed condition as shown and described can beconveniently shipped and stored safely in appreciable quantities, readyfor use. When put to use, unnecessary portions of v the assembly can bereadily discarded and disposed of leaving no extra unnecessary materialattached to the portions of the device which are placed in usethereafter. I While the invention has herein been shown and described inwhat is conceived to be a practical and effective embodiment, i it isrecognized that departures may be made therefrom within the scope of theinvention, which is not to be limited to the details disclosed hereinbut is to be accorded the full scope of the claims so as to embrace anyand all equivalent devices.

lclaim:

l. A combined breathable air accumulatonrebreather with stowage sectioncomprising: an elongated flexible plastic bag divided traversely intotwo sections by an air tight seal; the first of said sections being anaccumulator-rebreather section for breathable air and having a face maskattached thereto; the second of said sections being of a larger capacitythan said first section and opened at an end opposite said air tightseal so as to form a stowage section for said first section and saidface mask when folded from its opened end towards and beyond said airtight seal; and means for connecting a source .of breathable air to saidfirst section to supply air to said face g ,mask.

